TAMPA, Fla. _ In its first two games, the Lightning trying to score pretty goals produced only ugly results.
They mustered two total goals through two games with that approach. So coach Jon Cooper made it clear after Thursday's loss to the Canucks: Go inside, go low and don't be afraid to score dirty goals.
Defenseman Victor Hedman wasted little time in heeding his coach's words once the Lightning stepped on the ice for its next game Saturday.
Exactly one minute into the game against the Blue Jackets, Hedman fought down low as he put into the net a rebound of his shot. It was one of many goals the Lightning scored close to the net in an 8-2 victory at Amalie Arena in front of an announced sellout crowd of 19,092.
"Just goes to show that we really took the message to us," Hedman said. "We had a strong effort in front of the net. It's a big two points for us."
Before the game, Columbus coach John Tortorella predicted his team would have its hands full because he thought the Lightning would play their best game of the year.
Well, he was right.
Other than a span of time in the second period, the Lightning's scoring woes of the past two games seemed nonexistent.
They scored more goals in the first period _ three _ than they had through the previous two games. Cedric Paquette scored his first goal of the season with 8:43 left in the first with an assist from Yanni Gourde. Then Gourde scored his first of the year with 1:23 left in the first period while the Lightning had a man advantage.
Yes, the Lightning scored a power-play goal. Actually, they scored four power-play goals.
It took two games and nine missed opportunities, but the Lightning finally found a way to score on the power play. The first came when Gourde put the puck past Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky off a rebound.
Then the team that couldn't score on the power play couldn't be stopped on it.
Alex Killorn, J.T. Miller and Brayden Point added power-play goals as the Lightning went 4-for-7 with the man advantage.
But it was Point's even-strength goal that might have been the most vital goal of the game.
With the Lightning leading 3-0, Columbus picked up the pressure early in the second, jumping past Tampa Bay in shots on goal in the process. With 12 minutes left, Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped three consecutive shots, but Blue Jackets right wing Josh Anderson scored on the fourth.
Right wing Oliver Bjorkstrand then scored to bring Columbus within 3-2 with 4:09 left in the second.
The game began to have a similar feel to the Vancouver game: a strong start from the Lightning but trouble holding the lead.
The result wouldn't be the same, if Point had anything to say about it.
Point scored his even-strength goal with 44.6 seconds left in the second.
"It's just a kick in the teeth when they get that fourth goal," Tortorella said.
And intermission couldn't stop his momentum. Point all but squashed any hope of a Columbus comeback with his power-play goal 1:40 into the third period to make it 5-2.
Point has three goals this season, the most of any Lightning player.
Also joining the plethora of Lightning players with at least one goal in the game was Nikita Kucherov. He scored 13 minutes into the third, giving Tampa Bay a 7-2 lead. Kucherov and Steven Stamkos entered the game without a point this season. Kucherov now has two, including an assist on the first goal of the game. And Stamkos picked up an assist.
"If you're going to score, you want your big guys to do some of it," Cooper said. "When they don't do it, all of a sudden you don't want lack of confidence or any of that stuff creeping in. But both of those guys have done it now consistently, so it was just a matter of time."
And a matter of time before the NHL's highest-scoring team last season showed up this season.
